UFC

Kevin Holland is usually trying his darnedest to stay off his back, but the UFC star will be playing a different role Saturday night, according to Michael Page, who is making his promotion debut ... 'cause Venom tells us he's going to turn Trailblazer into a wrestler!

"Any intelligent mixed martial artist, any smart mixed martial artist, 100% we've got our egos, we've got that tough bravado, but at the same time we want to win, and if it gets further and further away from looking like you're going to win, you have to change tactics," 36-year-old Venom Page told TMZ Sports.

"So, we're prepared for [Kevin] to become a wrestler. I've turned many strikers into wrestlers before, and I'm sure at some point he's gonna want to do the same."

Of course, fans who have watched 31-year-old Holland fight throughout his MMA career know he's a dangerous striker, and his opps have done nearly everything to get him off his feet and on his back ... which is what makes MVP's prediction so bold.

It's also worth noting the UFC isn't giving Page a cupcake of a first fight ... he's going straight into the fire, and that's how he wanted it!

In fact, Michael says he met with UFC execs before signing, and he expressed a desire to fight the best straight away.

"I just want to jump right in the deep end. I've been in the game long enough now to not need warm-ups. Just let me at them and let's see if I sink or swim and we go from there."

Venom, 21-2 as a pro, counts wins over the likes of Douglas Lima, Derek Anderson, and Paul Daley.

As for what he hopes to accomplish, MVP is gunning for nothing short of a title.

Page vs. Holland is far from the only big fight on the UFC 299 card ... the event is anchored by the main event, a rematch between Marlon Vera and "Suga" Sean O'Malley.

Anthony Joshua dropped Francis Ngannou three times inside two rounds ... including a massive right hand that left The Predator out on the canvas!

The 34-year-old former 2x heavyweight champion was sharp from the very start of the bout ... putting 37-year-old Francis down in the first round with a hard straight right. Ngannou returned to his feet and even landed a hard punch towards the end of the round.

In the second, AJ again knocked Francis down ... but the former UFC champ beat the count, and the round continued.

But, just a short time later, Anthony uncorked a devastating right that landed flush to Francis' face, bending him backward (similar to the way Ngannou stopped Stipe Miocic), and immediately prompting the referee to stop the fight.

No count needed.

Ngannou, as doctors and medical professionals rushed in, remained down on the canvas for a couple of minutes ... and was even given oxygen.

Thankfully, Francis eventually got back on his feet, and appeared to be okay.

Despite less than 6 minutes of fighting, AJ encouraged Francis, who pushed Tyson Fury to the brink last year, to stick with boxing.

Promoter Eddie Hearn, who has worked with many of the biggest and best in the sport, called the KO punch one of the "most destructive knockouts" he'd ever seen.

If Francis Ngannou pulls off the upset win over Anthony Joshua on Friday, perhaps nobody will be happier than Drake -- 'cause the rapper just bet a small fortune on the UFC fighter to get the dub!!

Drizzy showed off his betting slip on his Instagram page just hours before the match goes down ... revealing he put a whopping $615,000 on Ngannou to beat Joshua in a boxing match in Saudi Arabia.

If it hits, Drake stands to make a ton of cash -- $1,906,500 to be exact -- and based on his IG caption, he seems confident it will all actually happen.

"Betting on a scary man," Drake said.

The fight will be just the second pro boxing one of Ngannou's career -- but, given how the first one went against Tyson Fury back in October, many think he can actually win it.

You'll recall, Ngannou -- the former UFC heavyweight champ -- roughed up Fury for most of their bout ... but lost in a controversial split decision.

One loss aside, Ngannou's seemed super confident in the leadup to this next fight -- and Drake appears to be believing the bravado.

The UFC just released one of the most kick-ass fight promos you'll ever see ... but it's not for Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya or Jon Jones -- it's starring Jake Gyllenhaal!!

The Academy Award-nominated actor is portraying a former MMA fighter-turned-bouncer named Elwood Dalton in the upcoming reimagining of the cult classic, "Road House" ... and Dana White's organization is clearly going all-in on its involvement with the Prime Video project.

The promotion's social media accounts posted a 90-second clip on Thursday ... and it's all about Dalton's pursuit of a UFC championship against a dude named Jax "Jetway" Harris (played by former fighter Jay Hieron), who holds the belt at the time of the movie matchup.

It features all the great stuff any other fight promo would have -- highlights, voiceovers and training montages (shoutout to Jake's shredded bod).

Of course, the flick worked hard to make any fighting footage look legit ... even shooting scenes at a UFC event in 2023 to give it the full effect.

There are some pics out there that spoil the result of the Dalton vs. Harris fight ... but we won't do the same here so folks can enjoy it on March 21.

Vince McMahon se embolsó más de 400 millones de dólares en un instante el lunes, vendiendo una parte de sus acciones de TKO tras su salida de la compañía por las acusaciones de agresión sexual. Esto según una reciente presentación ante la SEC.

McMahon se deshizo de 5.350.000 acciones -alrededor del 25% de sus acciones- mientras que todavía se aferra a su participación restante en la WWE y la empresa matriz de UFC, que es de alrededor de 15 millones de acciones.

La presentación ante la SEC señala el valor de las acciones en $411.95 millones, aunque podrían llegar cerca de los $436 millones. El precio de las acciones de ayer TKO cerró a $81.67 (veces 5.35 millones de acciones).

La noticia llega un mes después de que el antiguo mandamás dimitiera de su cargo como presidente ejecutivo de TKO como consecuencia de la presentación de una demanda por parte de una antigua empleada, quien lo acusaba de atroces actos sexuales y mala conducta.

McMahon ha mantenido su inocencia, pero sintió que era necesario renunciar "por respeto al Universo WWE".

Esta es la segunda vez que McMahon vende acciones. En noviembre vendió 8.400.000 acciones neto en al alrededor de $700 millones.

Vince McMahon pocketed over $400 million in an instant on Monday ... selling a chunk of his TKO stock following his departure from the company over sexual assault allegations, according to a recent SEC filing.

McMahon dumped 5,350,000 shares -- about 25% of his stock -- while still holding on to his remaining stake in WWE and UFC's parent company, which is around 15 million shares.

The SEC filing notes the value of the stocks at $411.95 million ... though they could be worth closer to $436 million, as yesterday's TKO stock price closed at $81.67 (times 5.35 million shares).

The news comes just over one month after the former honcho resigned from his role as TKO's executive chairman as a result of a former staffer's lawsuit filing ... which accused him of heinous sexual acts and misconduct.

McMahon has maintained his innocence ... but felt it was necessary to step down "out of respect for the WWE Universe."

This is the second big stock dump for McMahon -- back in November, he sold 8,400,000 shares ... netting around $700 million.

Fans and fighters alike will tell you MMA judging is largely broken ... and the solution? Some say open scoring, while others suggest turning former competitors into judges. What's the right answer? If anyone knows, it's Herb Dean.

TMZ Sports ran into the legendary referee at the airport in Los Angeles earlier this week and asked about open scoring ... which would make judge's scorecards visible to everyone in the arena, and watching at home.

Instead of finding out what the judge's scorecards look like after the bout, we'd all know in real time ... a point some argue would make fights more exciting. In other words, a fighter might've previously thought they were up on the cards, but with open scoring, that same fighter would have the benefit of knowing exactly where they stand, and what they need to do to earn a victory.

So, good idea, right? Not so fast.

"There's always an argument for [open scoring]," Dean said, before suggesting it could potentially be dangerous.

"I think there's things that could be problems with it. One, if the scoring is open, and some places where there's a heavy crowd effect, the crowd could track [the scoring], and that might be a problem."

Herb, who made his UFC debut at UFC 47 in 2004 (UFC 299 is next week!), added ... "Sometimes crowds can get violent over sports. I'm not saying that something is gonna happen, but it's something you might consider."

The longtime ref, who runs a top-notch ref/judging program, also talked about the push to bring retired fighters into the mix after they hang up the gloves ... something Herb's actively doing.

Some of his students include Joe Stevenson, John Romero, and Chris Leben ... three guys who have decided to stick around the sport in a different capacity. And there are others.

Dean, who fought back in the day, does caution simply being a fighter doesn't automatically mean you're a superior judge or ref.

"F*** you [Chito]! I'm gonna knock you out, buddy!" 😲

Time doesn't heal all wounds ... more than 3 1/2 years after fighting, Sean O'Malley still ain't fond of Marlon Vera (and the feeling's mutual), with the reigning champ telling TMZ Sports he's going to render Chito unconscious!

We talked to 29-year-old "Suga" just days before he heads to Miami for the main event fight against his 31-year-old rival ... about everything from the effect of his only loss (Vera injured O'Malley during the fight) to if he'll chase double champ status against Ilia Topuria.

On the August 2020 fight -- which Sean lost by TKO late in the first round -- O'Malley had this to say:

"I got a lot of hate for saying mentally I didn't lose that fight. I didn't feel like my skills were beat. It was a freak accident. Yeah, he threw the kid. Yeah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I've heard it all. Mentally undefeated, going in there with that mindset. Going in there with the mindset to kill this dude, and it's as simple as that," Suga told us.

We asked O'Malley, brevity of the fight aside, if he could take away anything from the first outing.

"Not really," he added. "Like you said, it was such a short fight, there really wasn't too much to take away from it. I was confident. I felt very confident in there. Even with the injury, my foot was shut off and I was still piecing him up. Dotting him up, chasing him down. I'm just very confident going into this fight."

It's Sean's first fight as defending champion ... we asked what, if anything, was unique this time around.

"Nothing's been different. My second 5 round training champ. Obviously, that last fight didn't go 5 rounds, it only went 2, 1 1/2. Nothing's really been different other than Chito, big fight, rematch. Same s***, different day. I've been doing this for 13 years."

Speaking of his belt, Sean won it with a masterful performance against Aljamain Sterling at TD Garden in Boston at UFC 292 in August 2023 ... in front of a decidedly pro-O'Malley crowd.

299 isn't in Beantown ... instead, the March 9 event will take place in sunny Miami, a city with a large Ecuadorian population. Chito was born in Chone, Ecuador.

Daymond John's lavish Los Angeles bash Tuesday night felt more like a UFC event -- at least for a few moments -- 'cause Bruce Buffer kicked off the whole shebang with his signature vocals!!

The famed ring announcer stepped up to the microphone to get John's Rise Nation Mastermind Welcome Party started ... and, as always, he didn't disappoint.

Buffer fired up guests with his "It's Tiiiiime!" tagline ... something John, a big fight fan, clearly loved.

The party -- which John was throwing for his network of entrepreneurs out at Harriet's Rooftop in West Hollywood -- then really got going ... as some big-name celebs and former athletes rubbed elbows throughout the night.

Metta Sandiford-Artest, Akbar Gbajabiamila and T.J. Ward were all there. Foodgod, Lewis Howes and Jeff Beacher were too.

John's goal for the shindig was to help some heavy hitters in the business world have a cool and unique place to meet and talk shop.

Brendan Schaub flipped his truck in a terrifying off-roading crash earlier this month ... and the wild accident was all captured on video.

It happened while the former UFC fighter was trying to show off his souped-up TRX for an episode of his "Tune Town" YouTube show.

The 40-year-old took the ride to Johnson Valley, Calif. for a day of fun after getting it all tricked out ... and, initially, everything was going according to plan.

He and the vehicle were getting good shots blowing through dirt, sand and boulders -- and despite getting stuck at one point, the afternoon still appeared to be a success.

But, as he was getting set to leave, Schaub tried to spin some donuts ... and lost control.

You can see in video that Schaub posted to his social media pages, his airbag exploded as he was thrown around inside of the cab.

Thankfully, he was able to make it out of the car relatively unscathed ... though he did reveal he suffered a concussion in the wreck.

"Definitely didn't need another one," he said of the head injury. "But it could be a whole lot worse."

Schaub wrote on his YouTube page that the truck cost him in the area of $200,000.

"My favorite vehicle I've ever owned is that TRX," he said.

Brendan Schaub volcó su camión a principios de este mes y el salvaje accidente fue capturado en video.

Ocurrió mientras el ex luchador de la UFC estaba tratando de mostrar su TRX en un episodio de su programa de YouTube "Tune Town".

El ex luchador de la UFC de 40 años se fue a Johnson Valley, California, para pasar un día de diversión después de haberlo equipado todo, y al principio, todo marchaba según lo previsto.

Él y el vehículo iban de lo mejor a través de tierra, arena y rocas y a pesar de quedarse atascado en un punto, la tarde todavía parecía ser un éxito.

Pero cuando se estaba preparando para salir, Schaub trató de girar y perdió el control.

Usted puede ver en el video que Schaub publicó en sus páginas de redes sociales que su airbag explotó cuando él fue lanzado dentro de la cabina.

Afortunadamente, fue capaz de salir del coche relativamente ileso, aunque reveló que sufrió una conmoción cerebral en el accidente.

"Definitivamente, no necesitaba otro", dijo de la lesión en la cabeza. "Pero podría ser mucho peor".

Schaub escribió en su página de YouTube que el camión le costó al rededor de $200.000.

"Mi vehículo favorito que he tenido es ese TRX", dijo.

Chuck Liddell estuvo nadando en San Diego durante el fin de semana, aunque no lo hizo voluntariamente.

TMZ ha obtenido un video de Chuck dando vueltas en un barco, hablando expresivamente con un par de tipos y aparentemente inclinándose hacia adelante para mostrarles un movimiento con el puño cerrado.

Por desgracia, parece que no tenía las piernas firmes y se fue hacia atrás. Los compañeros de Chuck no lo estaban mirando, por lo que no fueron capaces de detener su descenso.

Liddell chapoteo en el agua y las campanas de alarma sonaron con toda la tripulación en modo de rescate para arrastrar a Chuck de nuevo a bordo.

Uno de los chicos del barco salta de la parte trasera y nada hacia Chuck ayudándole a volver a subir. Tiene chicos tirando de sus brazos mientras otro le sostiene la espalda mientras un perrito mira.

Sus compañeros tardaron un rato en subirlo a cubierta -Chuck es un tipo bastante grande- pero al final lo pudieron sacar del agua.

Actuando como el campeón que es, Chuck siguió vibrando en la noche, testigos presenciales dicen que tenía comida entregada a la nave Lamborghini.

También saludó a una colección de fans - aunque no salió de la nave para el resto de la noche.

Chuck Liddell went for a swim in San Diego over the weekend ... though he didn't do it voluntarily, instead slipping off a boat into the bay!

TMZ has obtained video of Chuck hanging around on a Lamborghini yacht, talking expressively with a couple dudes and seemingly leaning forward to show them a move with his fist balled.

Unfortunately, seems like CL didn't quite have his sea legs underneath him 'cause he started to fall backward -- and Chuck's companions weren't looking toward him, so they weren't able to stop his descent.

Liddell made a big splash into the water, and the alarm bells sounded with the whole crew kicking into rescue mode to drag Chuck back on board.

The yacht's owner, Ace Rogers, jumps off the back and swims toward Chuck helping him back up. He's got guys pulling on his arms while another supports his back as a little dog looks on.

It takes a while for his buddies to pull him back up onto the deck -- Chuck's a pretty big dude -- but ultimately they dragged him up out of the water.

Acting like the champ he is ... Chuck -- who was a special guest for the Digital Mastery Mastermind event over the weekend -- just kept on vibing into the evening, eyewitnesses say he had food delivered to the Lambo yacht.

He also waved hello to a collection of fans -- though he didn't leave the boat for the rest of the night.

UFC Fight Night 237 saw some big names throw down in Mexico City ... but the biggest knockout of the night may have actually happened outside the Octagon.

Video of a brawl breaking out in the crowd during the big event Saturday night is going viral online ... with a huge group of men grabbing each other by the shirt and throwing punches, essentially turning the crowd into a mosh pit.

Right in the middle of the melee ... one of the biggest knockouts in UFC history -- if you can count a fight going down in the stands that is.

Check out the vid ... a man in a black shirt throws a vicious left hook against his unsuspecting victim, and the guy's body basically goes limp as he hits the concrete canvas.

The fight sorta cools off after the KO ... with guys on both sides holding people back -- though they don't look like security guards per se.

In fact, it seems like security took forever to respond -- just check out the multiple angles of the fight that go on for a while ... and UFC prez Dana White even expressed his shock at the lack of a security presence.

White said he stood there watching the fight for a while, just waiting for security to come in and handle the fight ... but they seemed to just let it go until it ended.

DW's clear though -- he doesn't feel it reflects poorly on the UFC ... even if it was one of the craziest things he's ever seen, he said.

BTW ... several fights actually went down in the ring too with Brandon Royval defeating Brandon Moreno to launch himself back into UFC Flyweight title contention.

UFC Fight Night 237 tuvo a grandes nombres en la Ciudad de México, pero el mayor nocaut de la noche en realidad puede haber sucedido fuera del Octágono.

El video de una pelea que estalló en la multitud durante el gran evento de la noche del sábado se está volviendo viral en línea, con un enorme grupo de hombres agarrándose unos a otros por la camisa y lanzando golpes, convirtiendo a la multitud en un mosh pit.

Justo en medio de la guerra, hubo uno de los mayores nocauts en la historia de la UFC.

Échale un vistazo al video, un hombre con una camisa negra lanza un gancho de izquierda contra su víctima desprevenida, y el cuerpo del hombre básicamente se queda sin fuerzas mientras golpea la lona de hormigón.

La lucha se enfría un poco después del KO, con los chicos de ambos lados celebrando otra vez y volviendo a la calma a pesar de que nunca apareció ningún guardia de seguridad.

De hecho, parece que la seguridad tomó una eternidad para responder, solo échale un vistazo a los múltiples ángulos de la pelea. Al presidente de la UFC -Dana White- expresó su sorpresa por la falta de seguridad.

White dijo que se quedó allí viendo la pelea por un tiempo, a la espera de que la seguridad llegara a poner orden, cosa que nunca pasó.

Sin embargo, deja claro que esto no tiene por qué ensuciar el nombre del deporte, aunque sea una de las cosas más locas que ha visto nunca, dijo.

Hubo varias peleas memorables, con Brandon Royval derrotando a Brandon Moreno para lanzarse de nuevo en la lucha por el título de peso mosca de UFC.

Sean Strickland is apparently taking on all challengers both inside and outside the Octagon these days ... getting into a scrap on Thursday with a man right on top of a mountain!!!

The impromptu wrestling match happened on a ski slope that appears to be somewhere in North America ... after a dude who Strickland may or may not have known asked him for a wrestling match amid a flurry of snow.

Of course, as one of the baddest men in the UFC -- the former middleweight champ accepted ... and seconds later, the two were locking horns.

Initially, Strickland's opponent seemed to hold his own as a group of snowboarders gathered around and cheered on the action ... but it didn't take long for the MMA star to get control.

And, after a few moments, Strickland made the guy tap. Later, he celebrated the unique win on Instagram.

"Always a good time on the mountain!!!!" the 32-year-old said. "Yall need to stop challenging me lmao!!!!!"

Strickland has made a bit of a habit of beating up non-pros lately ... he took on social media star Sneako in a sparring sesh a few days ago, and after toying with him for a few minutes -- he made the influencer bleed.